happy day.  yeager signed another card for me that i will save for another post. in the meantime, i'll update my modest 1978 topps dodgers autograph project - here's the tally:

here's a look at what the 1978 topps dodgers were doing in 1977.  starting with johnnie b. baker.

although he didn't lead the league for a third straight year, lopes did steal 47 bases while upping both his batting average and on-base percentage by about 40 points to .283 and .372, respectively. he hit a then-career high 11 homers (4 lead off and 1 walk off) and scored 85 runs. in the postseason, lopes had 3 rbi against the phillies and 2 against the yankees, but stole only two bases and was caught the same number of times. he did come to the mound to try to squelch the argument between tommy and doug rau during the world series, and that counts for something.

actually, try delino deshield's card, which is a little bit easier to read.

pinnacle's homage to 1953 topps?  perhaps.

although, if i were ojeda, i'm not sure i would take the advice of a guy who was 0-4 on his career.  other times, he appears in name only, like on roger mcdowell's 1993 upper deck card.

of course, he also fills out cards all on his own as seen on this 2003 upper deck vintage card.

hopefully there are some card photographers getting ready to head to spring training.  i'd take a boring posed photo with tommy lurking in the background any day.

orosco stayed for two years this time, appearing in 91 games for the dodgers.  by this time, he had already passed hoyt wilhelm and dennis eckersley to claim the top spot on the career games pitched list. orosco split the 2003 season between the padres, yankees and twins, and although he signed a contract with the diamondbacks after the season ended, he didn't make it back to the majors.

here's to you jesse orosco - another dodger double dipper!

2011 topps joe mauer insert of some sort.

it may be difficult to believe, but his 2011 season may well have been a bigger disappointment than that of mauer or justin morneau.  now he has jamey carroll to compete with for a job. 

thanks for the cards rod!

rodriguez made it as high as aaa in 2005 and was most recently pitching in the mexican league in 2010.  he may have been injured along the way, as he apparently didn't pitch in 2004.  hopefully signing all those stickers wasn't the problem.

and then, there were the scout autos.  i know there was lots of consternation about these cards when they were distributed in 2008 bowman.  i mean, who are more little known than scouts?  still, i sought this one out. 

ralph avila has been a scout for the dodgers since 1970, and was the first scout to make a presence in the dominican.  he signed pedro and ramon martinez, raul mondesi, and others for the dodgers, and helped establish the baseball academy system that most teams use today.  sometimes it's good to know about the little known.

send me your address again, if you would.

and thanks to everyone who is following, reading, and/or commenting.  keep at it because i'll give away another auto from the set sometime next month.  it's probably one of the best cards from the set in my opinion, as it scores high on the team, player, and photo fronts.  it's petey.

so, if you need some 1981 world series co-mvp in your life, follow timeless teams.  read timeless teams. and if so moved, comment on timeless teams.  thanks!